Whole Wheat Naan

These little loaves are the perfect accompaniment to Dal, whether you’re making it in the slow cooker or the Instant Pot. They have a light texture and flavor, not the dense heaviness some might expect from seeing the words “whole wheat” in the title. The first few times I made them, I didn’t bother putting the dough in the fridge. Mostly because I kept forgetting that it’s not just so that you can make it ahead of time. It turns out that letting the dough rest a bit in the fridge actually makes the naan better, even if you can only give it a couple of hours. It’s still quite yummy if you skip that step, but the texture is particularly lovely with a little chill time. The yogurt you use also makes a difference. It’s well worth a little extra hunt in the market to find some full-fat yogurt. I’ve made naan with fat-free when it was all I could find, and it was still good. But with whole milk yogurt, good becomes great.

You can prepare the dough by hand, stand mixer with dough hook, or bread machine dough cycle. The recipe is adapted with very little change from King Arthur. You’ll find a printer-friendly version of the recipe at the bottom of this page, and King Athur’s recipe here.

1.) Place all of the ingredients together in the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix everything just until the dough comes together. It will be a bit sticky and shaggy. (For bread machine users: Use your dough cycle, then skip to step 4.)

2.) Switch to the dough hook, and knead for about 7 minutes.
If you prefer to knead by hand, first lightly flour your work surface and hands, and knead until the dough is smooth.

3.) Oil a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, roll a bit, then turn the oiled side up and cover the bowl. Let it rise for about 1½ hours, or until it’s doubled in bulk.

4.) Pop the dough in the fridge for at least an hour or two, or up to 24 hours. This step is optional, but it makes a big difference in the texture of the finished naan.

5.) Place a pizza stone on the top rack of the oven, and pre-heat to 500°F. Divide the dough into six pieces. Hand-stretch or roll each piece into a thin oval shape, about 4″ x 7″. Pull on the front edge of the oval to elongate and create the traditional tear shape.

6.) Sprinkle with Kalonji (Nigella) seed, pressing the seeds down into the dough.

7.) Working in batches, place a few of the loaves onto the hot pizza stone. Bake for just 90 seconds. You’ll see the loaves start to get puffy. Turn oven to “broil,” broiling for 60 seconds or until very puffed-up and golden. Remove the loaves to a cooling rack, and turn the oven back to 500°. Repeat until all of the loaves are done.

Directions

1.) Place all of the ingredients together in the bowl of your stand mixer.
Mix everything just until the dough comes together. It will be a bit sticky and shaggy. (For bread machine users: Use your dough cycle, and then you can skip to step 4.)
2.) Switch to the dough hook, and knead for about 7 minutes.
If you prefer to knead by hand, first lightly flour your work surface and hands, and knead until the dough is smooth.
3.) Oil a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, roll a bit, then turn the oiled side up and cover the bowl. Let it rise for about 1½ hours, or until it’s doubled in bulk.
4.) Pop the dough in the fridge for at least an hour or two, or up to 24 hours. This step is optional, but it makes a big difference in the texture of the finished naan.
5.) Place a pizza stone on the top rack of the oven, and pre-heat to 500°F. Divide the dough into six pieces. Hand-stretch or roll each piece into a thin oval shape, about 4″ x 7″. Pull on the front edge of the oval to elongate and create the traditional tear shape.
6.) Sprinkle with Kalonji (Nigella) seed, pressing the seeds down into the dough.
7.) Working in batches, place a few of the loaves onto the hot pizza stone. Bake for just 90 seconds. You’ll see the loaves start to get puffy. Turn oven to “broil,” broiling for 60 seconds or until very puffed-up and golden. Remove the loaves to a cooling rack, and turn the oven back to 500°. Repeat until all of the loaves are done.